Song One (2014)

Best movie of this year hands down!

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Review: When I saw the box office takings for this movie, I really thought that there was a typing error but now I have seen it, I'm not surprised. The pace is really slow and nothing major happens in the film for ages. Its about a girl, Franny (Anne Hathaway) who has to travel home from India to be with her brother, who is in a coma after being in a car accident. She then moves in with her distant mum and she studies her brothers diary which explains his life as a busker. She then tracks his footsteps and goes to the clubs and bars that he has visited and she starts getting into the music that he listens to. Whilst going through his things, she finds a ticket to a concert of his favourite artist, James Forester (Johnny Flynn) so she goes to the concert to feel closer to her brother. She then gives Forester one of his demos, which he is quite impressed with and he goes to the hospital to meet up with her to pay his respects. From there, a relationship begins between the hot superstar Forester and the the grieving Franny who is hoping that her brother will wake up out of his coma. As Forester is leaving to play in different gigs around the world, they enjoy there brief time together before he hits the road again. I was hoping for a bit more from the movie but I personally found it quite boring and the performances weren't that great. Don't get me wrong, Hathaway showed great emotion throughout the movie, especially towards her brother who was in a coma through most of the movie but the whole project seemed cold and there just wasn't enough material to make it interesting. Johnny Flynn's character seemed distant through most of the movie and there wasn't much depth to his character. Anyway, I personally found the movie quite dull and depressing so it has to get the thumbs down from me. Disappointing!Round-Up: This is the first major movie release for the South African born Johnny Flynn, 32, so I can only comment on his performance in this movie, which wasn't that great. He seemed a bit dead behind the eyes most of the time and he kept on looking at people like they were speaking another language. He was quite an impressive guitar player/singer, especially when he mixed it up with the violin but there wasn't enough emotion from him as an actor. Anne Hathaway, 32, has the Intern with Robert DeNiro coming out later this year so I'm sure that she will put the disappointing box office takings for this movie behind her. In total, her movies have grossed over $2Billion, which include the Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar, Les Miserables, Alice in Wonderland, Brokeback Mountain and her famous role as Andy Sachs in the Devil Wears Prada so this mediocre movie can just go down as a bad day at the office. This is the first major release for director Kate Barker-Froyland so she's pretty new to the game. She done well when it came to the emotion aspect to the movie but for entertainment, it really failed. The corny love story took way too long to get going, even though it was predictable from the start and the ending was sketchy and badly put together. Anyway, the money that the film lost explains that it really isn't that great so I'm not the only one that found it pretty boring.Budget: $6million Worldwide Gross: $32,000 (Terrible)I recommend this movie to people who are into their emotional drama/music about a girl who travels home to be with her brother whose in a coma after a fatal car accident. 2/10

Song One is a romantic film written and directed by Kate Barker- Froyland that is set against the backdrop of the modern folk music scene.It stars Anne Hathaway and Johnny Flynn together with Mary Steenburgen.Franny is has musician brother with whom she has been estranged with named Henry.Later,he found out that her brother was hospitalized in coma after he met a car accident.She returns home to be with his brother.She then uses her brother's notebook to find out how his life has been through after she left home.She then seeks musicians and artist that Henry loved and in the process meets Jeremy Forester,his music idol.She was able to convince him to perform at her brother's bedside and later forms a romantic relationship with him.In the end,Henry wakes up from coma.The story was slow that it became boring.Added to that,the screenplay was absolutely formulaic and predictable that there was nothing really surprising in the events that are about to happen.Despite the presence of Hathaway,the film basically provides nothing new except the folk music being sung in it while the story is being told.Overall,it would have qualified more as a television movie.

It is most certainly not the best movie I have ever seen, but I still do not understand why so many low votes and disappointed comments. Maybe it has something to do with the ending of the movie, because it's an open one, and it leaves the conclusion(s) to the viewers. We don't know what happens next, we don't know if they end up together, I guess everyone will decide on their own and choose an ending they prefer. I loved the movie precisely because of the ending. It is more real that way, and therefore it is not just another happy end romantic movie. The music is amazing, and the movie itself has a soul, which is, for me, the most important requirement for a good movie. It is the story about a human drama, about life and family, about all the perks of having one. It is about meeting someone accidentally, when you least expect it, and all of the sudden you find yourself in the story of your life, without even being aware. Once it is all over, you learn how to cherish those moments, and you keep them as the precious ones. Because it has been worth it. Those who have been through stories like this will know what I'm talking about, and what this movie talks about. And they will catch a glimpse of themselves in this movie and its characters, and smile or cry in the name of old days and old loves.

Director/writer Kate Barker-Froyland has offered up a deliciously simple yet emotionally complex story of a family drawn together by an unfortunate accident. Karen (mother), Franny (daughter), are forced to reexamine their family status due to Henry's (son/brother) near death accident.Most of the movie/story is Franny learning about her brother through his notes and songs and interest in other singers and places he visits in NYC. Along the way through this path of discovery Franny meets and falls in love with a folk singer her brother admired.There are lots & lots of Anne Hathaway face closeups and lots & lots of folk songs. I like Hathaway but the many closeups and folk songs wore a bit thin. That's the reason for the 7 in stars. Otherwise this is a fine and thoughtful movie with excellent photography and production values. Please be aware of the lighting throughout as I do believe this is integral to setting the mood of many scenes.